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Indian para legend Pramod Bhagat defeated England’s Daniel Bethell to retain gold in the SL3 category at the NSDF Royal Beach Cliff BWF Para-Badminton World Championships, Thailand. Bhagat defeated his English rival 14-21, 21-15, 21-14 in a 100-minute long battle at the elite championships. With his win, the Para Badminton titan equalled Lin Dan’s mark of five World Championships. Not only this but with his top-podium finish, Pramod also became the first para-athlete to win three consecutive golds at the competition.
Apart from him, Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj picked another gold for India, recording his maiden World title in the SL4 category. He took down Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan 21-18, 21-18 to record another win for his side. India’s third gold came from Krishna Nagar in the SH6 category, who defeated China’s Lin Naili 22-20, 22-20, marking his fourth world medal.
India ended their campaign with three gold, four silver, and 11 bronze medals, totalling 18. Talking about Bhagat, the 35-year-old legend won gold in 2009, 2015, 2019, 2022, and 2024. After winning the clash, he said, “I have managed to equal my idol Lin Dan’s record of 5 world championships and second being having been able to retain three consecutive world championships,”
Describing the match as one of the most challenging matches physically and mentally, Bhagat told The Indian Express, “This match with Bethell would be my toughest both mentally and physically. I have not been playing well against Bethell the past few months and this was my time to prove doubters wrong. The match was exhaustive and Bethell played brilliantly but somehow, I managed to pull out a win.”
